


Left Turn

by Titch360



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-15
Updated: 2016-10-15
Packaged: 2018-08-22 11:26:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8284186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Titch360/pseuds/Titch360
Summary: When life takes a turn, the best place to find yourself is with family.





	

Left Turn

 

Gotham City’s historic heat wave broke a week earlier than the weather forecasts predicted, and the city was grateful.  Electricity usage dropped as air conditioner units were able to be turned off for the first time in weeks.  Ice cream parlors, public pools, and water parks were returning to their normal levels of business.  Movie theaters were no longer standing room only.  The city was collectively over the heat of summer, and was looking forward to fall and winter, and the cooler weather promised by the changing of the seasons.

While several of the city’s residents were looking forward to the possibility of a few storms in the future, the only current rain clouds to be found were the ones perpetually hanging over the youngest resident of Stately Wayne Manor.  The Abbey family had left Gotham two days earlier, and Damian was having a hard time with the adjustment, to say the least.  There hadn’t been much sleep in the large house since the boy and girl had their tearful farewell at Gotham International Airport.  Bruce had even thought of sedating his son, just so the family could get some rest.

It was an overcast Sunday morning that saw Dick and Tim yawning their way into the kitchen for a much needed cup of coffee.  As Dick poured, Tim said, “Did you get any sleep last night?”

“A little,” Dick yawned.  “How about you?”

“Not as much as I wanted,” Tim grumbled.  “I should probably be madder at him for the lost sleep, but I just can’t be.  We knew that Robin leaving would be hard on him, but this is on another level.”

Dick nodded.  “I know.  I wasn’t expecting anything like this.  Unfortunately, I don’t think he was, either.”

Tim looked confused, which wasn’t hard, given his lack of sleep lately.  “What do you mean?”

Dick set a cup of coffee in front of Tim and said thoughtfully.  “I don’t know how closely you’ve been paying attention, but Damian has been having two distinct sets of emotions over the last couple of days.  The sadness of having his girlfriend leave is obvious, of course.  What’s a little harder to notice, though, is the guilt.”

Tim narrowed his eyes in thought and said, “Guilt?  I guess I haven’t noticed that.  Any idea why he feels guilty?”

Dick nodded, “He feels guilty because he doesn’t know how to handle his sadness on his own.  He’s got the sadness, then the nightmares, then the crying from the nightmares, which are all linked.  However, then one of us goes to check on him, and he feels guilty that, one, he woke one of us up, and two, that he can’t control this on his own yet.”

“How do we help him,” Tim yawned.

Dick shook his head, “We just have to be there for him.  I’m pretty sure the nightmares will stop once the Abbey’s are a little more settled and Robin has time to call him and let him know that she’s alright.”

Tim’s eyes widened, “She hasn’t called him yet?  I thought they ended up not breaking up?  No wonder he’s so torn up.”

“She told him it would be a few days before they could talk again.  I don’t think he took her seriously.”

Tim nodded, “Well, if there’s anything I can do to help him, I hope he remembers that he can come to me.”

Dick smiled, “Just being here for him will be a big help.  He probably won’t tell you, and probably doesn’t even realize it, but you staying here, instead of being at your apartment this weekend, is really helpful.  And I’m glad you want to help him, because you get to check on him after his nightmares tonight.”

Tim sputtered and nearly spit out his coffee.  “What?”

“Bruce sat up with him Friday night.  I sat up with him last night.  It’s your turn tonight.”

Tim looked at Dick slyly, “It seems like we’re going in order here.  Why isn’t Jason next?”

Dick’s expression fell, “Jason is getting a pass on this for the same reason you didn’t see him at all yesterday.”

Tim cocked his head, “Yeah, I was wondering about that.  Where was he?”

“His neighbors held a memorial service yesterday for those killed in the apartment fire.  He originally wasn’t going to go, but he said he was glad he did.  He needs some time to process his own loss.”

“And we’re going to give him all he needs,” Tim nodded.  “Okay, I’ll take nightmare patrol tonight.”

“I’m that much of a burden to all of you that you have to draw straws to see who has to comfort the baby?”

Dick and Tim winced at the spite Damian aimed at himself as he walked into the kitchen.  Dick said, “You’re not a baby, Damian.  But, I bet that when you were a baby, you were a cute one.”

Damian’s facial expression blanked in an instant.  “Now is not the time for remarks like that, Grayson.”

“Why,” Dick asked with a sly smile, “Because it had the intended effect of cheering you up, and you’re not done being depressed yet?”

_Sometimes, I wish he didn’t know me so well.  It’s harder to be mad at him when he does things like this._   “I’ve had more than enough of being depressed, and it did help cheer me up, _slightly_.”  Damian sighed as he sat on the stool next to Tim, “I just wish she would call and tell me they’re safe.  I know the flight landed on time, and they picked up their rental car.  Weather satellites reported no snow in the area of their new house, and State Troopers reported no recent automobile accidents.  I mean, even a text would help.”

Tim looked at the boy seated to his right and said, “Wait, how’d you know that they picked up their rental car?”

Damian rolled his eyes, “Talia had me hack into the Pentagon when I was eight.  I think I can crack the encryption at Hertz.”

“And the State Troopers?”

Damian gave a half grin, “Being able to mimic the voice of Batman opens a lot of doors.”

Tim shook his head as Dick matched the half grin and said, “Have you thought of calling her?”

“I,” Damian looked down nervously, “I did think of it, but I’m…”

“You’re what?”

“I’m nervous.” Damian looked up with a scared expression on his face.  “Okay, I’m terrified.”

Dick and Tim shared a confused look.  “Terrified of what?  You aren’t calling to be a hostage negotiator, you’re calling the girl you love.”

Damian winced as the comment brought up the too recent memories of the Abbey girl’s kidnapping at the hands of the Penguin.  “I know,” Damian stood and started pacing around the kitchen.

“What aren’t you telling us,” Tim asked.

Damian glanced at Tim, then up at Dick and said, “You remember what I was planning on giving Robin for Christmas?” A slow nod met the inquiry.  Damian continued, “Well, I gave it to her last week, after she tried to break up with me and I talked her into the long distance relationship.”

Dick’s eyes widened in shock as Tim looked back and forth between the brothers, confused.  Dick said quietly, “Damian Wayne, you are twelve years old.  Please tell me you didn’t go and do something foolish, like propose.”

This time, Tim did spit out the coffee he had been sipping.  “You did what?”

Damian looked over at Tim and said, “I bought her a ring for Christmas.  I made sure to explain that it was just a token of my love for her, not an expectation that we will get married anytime soon.”

“What do you mean, anytime soon,” Dick asked sternly.

“I might have told her that I plan on proposing when I’m seventeen.  She seemed to like the idea, but now I’m thinking I might have scared her off when I told her I already had a date picked out.”

Dick was shaking his head, and Tim was looking at the boy like he had grown a second head.  Tim said, “What date did you pick?  If it’s Valentine’s Day, I’m going to think that Dick has been drugging you.”

Damian rolled his eyes, “I picked the day after my eighteenth birthday.  That way everything is legal, and everyone can stop complaining that Robin and I are moving too fast.”

“What did she say?”

“She said we can talk about it again in a couple years.  It was weird, though.  I don’t think that was what she wanted to say at first.  Now that she’s had some time to think about it, I think I scared her.”

Tim walked around the counter and stood next to Dick.  “What makes you think you scared her?”

Damian sighed, “It takes fifteen seconds to type out ‘I’m okay’ into a text and send it.  I know, I timed myself doing it.  She couldn’t find fifteen seconds in two days to do that?”

“Moving is a lot of work, Damian.  Not everyone can pack everything they would want to take to a new home into a large duffle bag, like you can.”  Damian looked at Dick with a hint of hurt as the man continued, “As much as it only takes a short time to send a simple message, I think you’re overlooking a simple explanation.  It’s Alaska.  I can guarantee you that cell coverage is not what it is here.”

Damian looked up with embarrassment shining in his eyes.  “I didn’t even think about that,” he said quietly.  “I’ve been jumping to conclusions again, haven’t I?”

Dick hugged the youth and said, “Yes, I believe you have.”

“Grayson, can you do me a favor and check her Facebook page?  Maybe they have home internet set up, and she was able to get a message out that way.”

Dick nodded and pulled out his phone.  Pulling up the girl’s page, Dick’s eyes widened.  Concerned, Damian asked, “What?  What’s wrong?”

Recovering from what he saw, Dick said, “Well, her status update reads ‘Alaska is far more beautiful than I thought it would be’.  Um…she changed her profile picture, too.”

Dick turned the phone so Damian could see the new image.  It was a shot of the ring that he had slipped on her finger a week ago.  A slow smile crossed his face as Tim looked at the screen over the boy’s shoulder.  “Is that the ring?”

“Yeah,” Damian said distractedly.

“You seem to have good taste in jewelry.  I didn’t know Facebook had a relationship status of ‘almost engaged slash off the market’.”

“She said that,” Damian asked with a gasp.

Dick turned the phone back to look at the screen and said, “Yep.  You sure do know how to make an impression.  Oh wait, she sent me a message.”  Dick read the short note and said, “Yeah, Damian, you were definitely jumping to conclusions.”

“What does it say, Grayson,” Damian demanded.

“’Dick, please help.  There is zero signal up here, and our house phone won’t be installed for another week.  The internet is hit and miss.  I tried sending him an email, but it keeps coming back undeliverable.  Somehow I can get on Facebook, but not much else.  Please tell Damian that we got here safe, I miss him terribly, and I love him…’”

Damian snatched the phone from his brother and re-read the message twice more before typing, ‘I love you, too.  I’m glad to hear you got to Alaska safely, and I can’t wait until we can talk again.  This is Damian, by the way.  Grayson showed me your message, and I hijacked his phone to make sure I could write back.  Miss you.’  He handed the phone back to Dick and sat back on a stool at the counter.

Dick leaned over to Tim and whispered, “I think you lucked out on nightmare patrol.  I don’t think it will be needed anymore.”

“I hope you’re right,” Tim hissed back, “We all need a good night sleep.  Did you know that he even woke Alfred up last night?”

“Yeah, I saw him in the hallway, too.”

Damian looked over, seeming to break out of a trance, and said, “Um…I apologize for the last two nights.  I know I haven’t been acting like myself lately.”

“No, you haven’t,” Bruce’s voice came from the doorway.

Damian looked sheepishly at the man’s feet.  “Father, I wish I had been able to control myself better.  I’m sorry.”

Bruce wrapped the boy in a hug as he yawned.  “You shouldn’t be sorry, Damian.  This is your first love.  It’s okay to feel something, and it’s healthy to express it.  You had a lot inside that needed to come out.  If you had tried to hold all of that inside, I think you would have exploded by now.  That said, you look calmer this morning.”

Damian nodded into Bruce’s chest and said, “I heard from Robin.  She’s safe, as is the rest of the family, I assume.”

Bruce said softly, “I’m glad, son.”  Looking at the rest of his children, Bruce said, “I was told to inform you that we are on our own for breakfast.  Alfred is taking a week of personal time; said he needed some rest.”

Damian looked down guiltily, “Oh, sorry Father.  We’re not easy on him, are we?”

Bruce rested a hand gently on the back of Damian’s head and said, “No, we aren’t.  Don’t blame yourself, Damian.  You couldn’t help the last couple of days, and that isn’t why he’s taking some time off.”

“Well, the least I can do is make breakfast, then.  Maybe I can start to make up the last couple days to all of you.”  Damian walked away and began pulling out some basic breakfast materials.

Tim took a stool next to Bruce and asked, “Is Alfred actually going somewhere, or is he just locking himself in his rooms for a week and ignoring all of us?”

Bruce smiled and said, “He’s catching a plane this afternoon for England.  His old Army platoon is holding a reunion, and he hasn’t seen any of his old friends in years.”

Damian cocked an ear to listen to the conversation behind him.  On the fly, he changed his menu, and began preparing a couple extra items that were not intended for the men sitting at the counter.  Soon, five ham, tomato, and spinach omelets had been plated.  Three were laid out on the counter.  When he went to set out the fourth, Damian looked around and asked, “Is Todd not eating this morning?”

Bruce said between bites, “His door was still closed when I came down.  He’s probably just sleeping in.”

Damian set the fourth omelet, along with a pot of tea he had been brewing, on a serving tray, and carried it out of the kitchen, the eyes of his family following him.  A minute later, the boy was tapping on a door in one of the least accessed sections of the house.

Alfred opened the door to his room while tying the cinch on his robe.  He smiled down at the boy and said, “Hello.  What’s this?”

Damian began to walk into the butler’s personal space, but stopped before he got to the threshold.  He took a step back, met the butler’s eyes, and said, “Breakfast.  I understand you are catching a flight.  You shouldn’t do that on an empty stomach.  Don’t worry, Father didn’t make it, so it’s safe to eat.”

Alfred took a step back, smiling as he allowed the child into his rooms, a place in the manor where Damian had only been once.  Damian took a nervous step through the door, stopping next to the butler.  “Where should I put it?”

“Over on the table will be nice, thank you.”  Alfred gestured to a small table next to a window, looking out on the north side of the property.  “Can I assume that you have taken the cooking duties for my impending absence, Master Damian?”

Damian shrugged, looking around, but trying not to be nosey.  “I guess so.  I think we all will do whatever needs to be done to ensure that Father doesn’t try his hand at cooking.  The city would never be able to survive, with all of its vigilantes down with food poisoning.  Pennyworth…never mind.”

The boy headed for the door, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.  “I am not leaving because of you, Master Damian.  I will only be gone for a week.  I know you can survive that long without an old man around.  I have actually been planning this trip for months, but with as busy as we all have been lately, it completely slipped my mind until just a few days ago.”

“Oh,” Damian said, his unasked question answered.

“If I may, you seem…clearer…this morning.  Has something occurred that I have not been informed of yet?”

Damian couldn’t help but smile, “Robin got a message to Grayson for me through Facebook.  They made it safely.  She just has no cell signal and their house phone hasn’t been installed yet.  I feel bad that my lack of aptitude in self-control has caused such a disturbance in your normally-ordered household.  I apologize.  You should probably eat that, while it’s still warm.”

Alfred smiled down at the boy again and said, “I will do that.  Thank you for thinking of me.  It was very thoughtful of you.”

Damian waited until Alfred had sat down and taken a sip of tea with a smile before silently making his exit from the room.  He walked slowly back to the kitchen, where he found Dick washing dishes.

“Where is everyone else?”

Startled, Dick turned and said, “They left when they were done eating.  Jason said thanks for the omelet, but it needed more cheese.”

Damian rolled his eyes, “That’s because there wasn’t any cheese in it.”

Looking back at the dishes, Dick said, “You know, you could have eaten with us.  You didn’t need to leave.”

“That wasn’t for me.”

Dick turned the water off and turned back to Damian with a bright smile on his face, “You made breakfast for Alfred?  Damian, I’m proud of you.  Wait, there was only one omelet on that tray.  That means you haven’t eaten yet.  Damian, did Jason eat your breakfast?”

Damian walked over to the refrigerator and grabbed an apple from the crisper, and said, “I’m not that hungry right now.”

Tim walked back into the kitchen and said, “You didn’t want to eat with us, Damian?”

Dick answered while the boy chewed his fruit.  “He didn’t eat.  He served the one who usually does the serving.”

“You made him smile, didn’t you,” Tim asked with a grin.

“It was the least I could do,” Damian said around another bite.

A loud roar coming from just down the hall caused all three brothers to jump.  Dick and Tim exchanged a smile, but Damian looked concerned and asked, “What the hell was that?”

Dick sighed contentedly, “I haven’t heard that sound in years.  It brings back fond memories.”

“What is it,” Damian restated his question.

Tim said, “Damian, there is something you don’t know about your other brother.  You see, this is Sunday morning.  Like billions all over the world, Jason is taking this time to worship and seek the fellowship of his common believers.  In other words, Jason is attending church.”

Damian’s jaw fell as more loud noises echoed from down the hall.  “Todd?  There are about as many religious bones in his body as there are in mine.  What is he really doing?”

Dick and Tim walked the youth down the hall to the den.  There, they stood in the back of the room and watched as a line of cars on the screen began driving around an oval shaped track.  Tim patted Damian on the shoulder and said, “There are all sorts of houses of worship, Damian.  Your brother chooses to pray at the altar of speed.”

Dick folded his hands, as if in prayer, and said in a deep, but mocking voice, “If you will all bow your heads for the invocation.”

Smiling, Tim bowed his head as Damian watched his odd numbered brothers.  Speaking together loudly, both Dick and Tim said, “Hail Mary, full of grace.  Let me win this NASCAR race.”

Grumbling from the couch, Jason said, “I’ve told you two many times over the years, if you’re going to make dumbass comments, do it somewhere else.  None of you either need to be here, or are particularly wanted here.  You all can leave, alone or collectively, at any time.  Now, preferably, before you make me miss any more of the race.”

Dick and Tim, having heard the same threat several times before, chuckled as they walked out of the den.  Jason grumbled to himself, then looked over his shoulder to make sure they were gone.  Jason had been a NASCAR fan for many years, and had taken endless ribbing from the rest of the family for his choice in entertainment.  It was just something that had always appealed to him, ever since he watched his first race with his father.  It was really the only memory he had of the man, and as much as he had left that life behind before he ever met Batman, it was a habit that he refused to break.

Jason had to do a double take when he looked towards the door and found Damian still standing in the room.  “Didn’t you hear me?  I said leave.”

Damian wasn’t listening to his brother.  Instead, his attention was captured by the action on the screen.  He said distractedly, “This is NASCAR?  I’ve heard of it, but I’ve never seen it before.”

Jason rolled his eyes, “Well, now you’ve seen it.  Goodbye.”

Jason turned back to the screen, shaking his head.  _Damn Dickhead and Replacement.  Can’t I just have one thing that they don’t make fun of?  Now they’re getting the Demon in on their ridiculing.  Damn, I was starting to like him.  He isn’t all that bad, when he tries to be himself, instead of a miniature Dick._

Several minutes passed before Jason was startled out of his concentration on the race by an unexpected voice.

“Wait.  He can’t do that…can he?”

Turning again, Jason found Damian standing right behind him, with his hands leaning on the back of the couch.  “Didn’t I tell you to leave?”

“Yes, you did,” Damian replied absently, his eyes on the screen.

“…And?”

Damian shrugged, “I didn’t.”

“Why,” Jason growled.

“This looked…interesting.”

Jason stared up at the youth’s face.  Damian still hadn’t taken his eyes off of the screen.  Jason could make out no mocking or malice in the boy’s expression.  If he had to interpret the expression, it was more of a thirst for knowledge.  _Could Demon…Damian…actually be interested in this?_

Jason sighed softly before extending a small olive branch.  He said softly, “What has you so confused?”

Damian pointed at the screen, “That blue car was going faster, and had the preferred racing line.  That yellow car…well, he blocked his pass.  He can’t do that, can he?”

Jason had to think for close to a minute before a smile blossomed on his face.  Damian had explained a Formula 1 passing rule, one that Jason personally hated.  “This isn’t Formula 1, Damian.  You can block in NASCAR.  If you’re going to pass someone in this race, they’ll make you earn it.”

“Oh.”  Damian looked like he was pondering something he had never considered before as he rounded the couch and sat next to Jason.  “How else are the sports different?”

The elder’s smile continued as he said softly, “Are you a Formula 1 fan, Damian?”

Damian blushed, “A bit.  Talia took me to a race in Monaco once.  I had never seen anything like it.”

Jason’s eyes widened.  “Wait, Talia did something for fun?  You got to go to the Monaco Grand Prix?  That’s not fair.”

Damian sighed, “Technically, we were on a mission for the League.  We were posing as a wealthy mother and son around town while she marked a target.  For part of the mission, we got to watch a race.  Talia complained the whole time, which may be why I enjoyed it so much.”  Damian grew a pained look at the next memory.  “Actually, she beat me pretty hard for paying more attention to the race than the mission.  Those were some of the first scars to actually stay on my back.  I was five.  Not even Assassin training will override someone that young seeing racecars for the first time, live in action.”

_I don’t have to feel sorry for him every time he mentions Talia beating him, do I?  If I do, then he will be in a constant state of pity.  Still, I’ve seen his scars, and I know how Talia is, and he’s right.  That is a natural reaction to seeing racecars up close._   Jason regarded the boy sitting at his side and asked quietly, “Are you really interested in the race?”

Damian nodded, still distracted by the action on screen, “Yes, Todd.  There are a lot of gearheads in this house.  How is it that you and I are the only ones interested in racing?”

A smile crossed Jason’s face as he said, “It’s because we’re the only ones with good taste.”

A commercial break interrupted the race, and Damian turned to look at Jason.  “We seem to have a minute.  Explain the differences between Formula 1 and NASCAR.”

His eyes widening, Jason said with a chuckle, “That will take more than one commercial break, but I guess the biggest difference, and the most obvious one, is the cars.  They are supposed to be vaguely similar to showroom models.”

“I want to see the showroom that sells those, and possibly bring one of Father’s credit cards when we find it.”

Jason shook his head softly, “The original idea was to use cars that people could actually buy, as a way to keep the sport closer to the fans.  Stock Cars originally meant showroom models.  ‘Race on Sunday, sell on Monday’, was an old slogan used in the sport.  A lot of the old drivers either owned or worked at car dealerships when they weren’t racing.  The idea of the professional racecar driver is a relatively new concept; the original NASCAR drivers all had day jobs, and raced on the weekends.  Racing was a way to attract attention to a manufacturer or a dealership, to drive up sales.”

Damian smirked, “Drive up sales?  Is that supposed to be a joke?”

A chuckle left Jason’s throat, “No, it wasn’t, but I guess it could be.  The cars look the way they do now, because the organizing body decided the safety of the drivers was more important.”

Damian’s smirk flattened, “Have people died while racing in NASCAR?”

“Yeah,” Jason nodded, “The death that caused the biggest changes recently was in 2001, when Dale Earnhardt, who was the most popular driver at the time, was killed in a crash on the final lap of the biggest race of the season.  Everything changed after that.  There are still injuries in crashes, but I can’t remember anyone actually dying in a race since then.”

“So, the safety precautions worked, then?”

“So far.”

The commercial break ended, and their attention returned to the race.  Several minutes of close racing was enough to forestall any further questions from Damian, until a car swerved sharply and slammed into the outer wall, bringing out a caution flag.

Jason had spent just as much time watching Damian as he had watching the race since the end of the commercial break.  He still wasn’t convinced that the boy was actually interested in watching the race, or if he was just trying to find something to ridicule him over.  Worse yet, Damian could have been spying for Dick, in the hopes of finding out something embarrassing, so they could have a laugh at Jason’s expense.  So far, Damian’s expressed intentions of watching the race were proving to be true, but Jason knew how cunning the child could be, when he wanted to.

Still, Damian was just sitting there, leaning slightly forward on the couch, watching the race.  For all Jason could tell, Damian had forgotten that he was there.  Shrugging internally, Jason turned back to the TV.

From out in the hallway, Bruce leaned against the door frame and smiled.  He hadn’t expected these two to get along as easily as it seemed they did.  _Maybe it’s because they both had recent traumas.  Or, maybe it’s something entirely different.  Maybe it’s because Jason was on his own for so long?  Damian knows Jason’s history with Talia, and how Jason was able to get away and start a life of his own.  Maybe there is some form of respect in that.  Damian is trying to do that himself right now.  He has to be wondering how Jason made such a clean break from Talia, without the same emotional repercussions he has been suffering.  Dick told me all about how Damian wants a family.  I’m just glad that Damian’s vision of a family seems to include all of us._

Smiling, Bruce turned from the room to see Dick standing and watching him.  The younger man gave a bright smile and waved Bruce over.  Bruce left his even numbered sons to continue to grow their relationship.

As another commercial break started, Jason sighed and said, “They aren’t watching us anymore.  You don’t have to continue to pretend that you’re interested in this.  I know you just did this to make Dick happy.”

Damian turned from the screen, replying, “I didn’t think Father would watch us for so long.  Wait, what do you mean, I just did this to make Grayson happy?”

“Why are you here, Damian?”

Damian looked confused, “The race is on,” he said simply.

Jason’s eyes narrowed, “A race you didn’t even know existed until Dickhead and Replacement dragged you in here.  What’s their game?  What sort of embarrassing situation are they coming up with?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”  Damian spoke softly.  He truly didn’t know what Jason was getting at.  “If you want to be alone, I’ll leave.  Just tell me what channel the race is on, so I can turn it on in the other room.”

Jason met the youth’s eyes with a hard stare for close to a minute.  “You stayed to actually watch the race?”

“Yes.”

Jason could see in Damian’s eyes that he was telling the truth, if not the whole truth.  “That whole story about going to Monaco to watch a race?”

“That was true,” Damian said unflinchingly.

“Out of all the other myriad amusements that Bruce has filled this house with, you would rather sit here and watch a NASCAR race?”

Damian nodded, “Yes, I would rather sit here with you and watch a race than do something else right now.”

_I never said ‘with me’,_ Jason thought.  _Maybe he isn’t as much like Dick as everyone says._

“Fine, but I need to know what you are hiding from me.”

Damian looked down uncomfortably and mumbled, “You’re just going to use it to make fun of me.”

Jason blinked at the turn in the conversation.  _Wait, he thinks I’m going to make fun of him?  Didn’t I just think he was going to make fun of me?_   “Why don’t you try me?”

Damian glanced back up uncertainly, but said softly, “I didn’t just want to watch the race.  I…I’m still new to this whole ‘brothers’ thing.  I’ve noticed that word takes on different meanings, depending on who I apply it to.  Being Grayson’s brother is completely different than being Drake’s brother.  I…wanted to find out, eventually, how different it would be being your brother.”

Jason was quiet for a minute, thinking how far from his initial guess that response was.  “Eventually?”

Damian shrugged, still not looking up.  “You’ve only lived here for a few weeks.  I didn’t figure we would instantly be the best of friends.  It’s taken almost three years to get to a point where Drake’s company is acceptable.  While I hope it doesn’t take as long with you, I’m not so foolish to believe that it will be quick, or easy.  Besides, weren’t you the one who said that there is no reason for either of us to be miserable alone?”

“Are you miserable, Damian,” Jason asked softly.

“I’m doing better,” the boy shrugged.  “We can improve together, if you are willing.”

Jason nodded slowly, thinking on what he heard.  They both turned back to the race silently, wondering what was next, and if anything would change between them after today.

Several minutes later, Damian ventured a question.  “The announcers have spent a lot of time talking about that yellow car, the number eighteen.”

Jason grumbled, “That’s Kyle Busch.”

Damian glanced over and asked, “Is he any good?”

“He’s an asshole.”

A smirk crossed the boy’s face as a snort of laughter escaped his lips.  Jason looked over with a small grin, and scooted a bit closer to the boy, as Damian asked, “What makes you say that?”

Jason threw an arm on the back of the couch and said, “He’s a dirty racer.  Yes, bumping is allowed in NASCAR, and it makes for entertaining racing, but there is a line, and he crosses it regularly.  He won the championship last year, but that was only because NASCAR changed the rules to give him a chance.”

Damian cocked his head and asked, “Why did they do that?”

Jason shrugged and replied, “I think his sponsors pressured NASCAR in order to give them an unfair advantage.  He was injured in the first race of the season, and was out for the first third of last season.  One of the rules to challenge for a championship is running a certain number of races each year.  He didn’t make the minimum number of races, but was still allowed to compete.  He already had an unfair advantage, driving for Toyota.”

“Why is that an unfair advantage?”

“Several years ago, a couple of manufacturers dropped out of competition.  NASCAR opened up the manufacturer list to others, and Toyota jumped onboard.  To get them up to speed, so to speak, quickly, NASCAR changed the rules package for them, and them alone.  The Toyota engines are allowed to have more horsepower than the engines from other manufacturers, giving them an advantage.”

Damian nodded slowly, thinking.  Finally, he turned and asked, “What does NASCAR mean, anyway?  It’s a strange word.”

Jason smiled, “It’s not a word; it’s an acronym.  It stands for the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing.”

Damian giggled at the explanation.  “That’s a little redundant, isn’t it?  Stock Car Auto Racing?  Do they really need Car and Auto in the title?”

Jason loosed his own small laugh and said, “Well, NASCR just doesn’t roll off the tongue as smoothly, and NASAR sounds like a space-based radar system.  Actually, it would probably just be NAAR, since you would really have to take out the Stock Car part.”

Damian looked back at the screen and said, “Well, given your previous statement, this ought to make your day.”

Jason looked back at the television and couldn’t keep the smile off his face.  A large pile-up had occurred in the race, and the yellow number eighteen car was currently seen spinning into the outer wall of the race track.  “Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy,” Jason said sarcastically.

Damian watched with wide eyes, “That’s got to be half the cars in the race.”

Jason shrugged, “Eh, most of them will be able to be fixed and to continue the race.”

“Do crashes like that happen a lot?”

With a nod, the elder brother said, “A lot more than they do in Formula 1.  Then again, when you have forty cars driving at two hundred miles an hour, less than a foot from one another, what do you expect?  It is a testament to the skill of the drivers that there aren’t more crashes like this.”

The wreck was cleaned up and racing got back under way.  The brothers were mostly silent for the next half hour.  Neither felt uncomfortable in the presence of the other, the way they might have the day before.  Both were still surprised that they had found an interest in common.  Jason did notice, however, when Damian inched a bit closer to the elder brother.

Damian’s stomach started grumbling, and Jason looked over at the youth.  “The omelet wasn’t enough for you?”

“I didn’t have one.”

“What?” A wave of guilt rolled over Jason, surprising the older man.  “Did…did I eat your breakfast?”

Damian shook his head, “No, you ate your breakfast.  Um…did you like it?”

Jason shrugged, “Could have used a little more cheese.”

Damian rolled his eyes, “That’s because there wasn’t any cheese in it.”

“Who makes an omelet without cheese?  That’s, like, one of the main ingredients.”

Damian looked up slyly, “Perhaps you would like to take over cooking breakfast until Pennyworth returns?”

Jason winced, “That might not be the best idea.  You see, I got my cooking skills from Bruce.”

Damian’s eyes widened and he blurted out, “And you are still alive?  How did you survive, living on your own for so long?”

Jason patted Damian’s shoulder with a soft smile on his face, “The microwave, and frozen dinners, are my friend.”

Damian met Jason’s eyes for half a minute before turning back to the screen.  Quietly, he said, “I’ll remember the cheese in the future.”

The next hour passed in silence, and soon, the race was over.  Damian looked over at Jason, expecting the man to quickly leave the boy alone, and spoke up to, hopefully, prevent that.  “Have you ever been to a race, Todd?”

“No,” he said wistfully, “I’ve wanted to, but I’ve never had anyone to go with, and I didn’t want to go alone.”

Jason looked down at the youth critically, wondering if Damian was thinking of anything in particular when he asked.  “You know, there is a big race in Daytona Beach next February.  I could probably get a couple of tickets.  This far out, there should still be some seats available.”

“You…you would want to do that?”

Jason smirked, “Hell yeah.  You know anyone who might want to go with me?”

“I can think of a person or two.  The big question is, would you want me along with you?”

Jason shrugged, “We have seven months to figure that out.  Anyway, I think I can stand being around you, if it means being able to see the Daytona 500 live.”

Damian couldn’t respond.  He was completely blown away that Jason, his distant second brother, who didn’t even call him by his real name until just a few months ago, would be willing to offer to spend that kind of time with him, alone.  _Grayson was right.  Maybe Todd is looking for some of the same things I am.  Maybe…maybe we can learn what it means to be a family…together._

Damian nodded, with his true smile playing across his lips.  Jason returned the smile and nod, then gave a bigger grin when Damian’s stomach started rumbling again.  “You better go feed that, before you start getting cranky.”

Damian rolled his eyes, but couldn’t argue that he was hungry.  He rose and walked towards the door.  Damian stopped and turned back, one hand on the doorframe, and said, “You know, I asked how the two motorsports were different.  You really didn’t explain the rules of NASCAR to me.”

Jason looked over his shoulder with a twinkle in his eye.  “There’s always next Sunday’s race.”

 

**A/N:  Well, I’ve had that idea for a while now.  I finally decided to get it down.  A while back, I wanted to write a Damian/Jason bonding piece.  That one ended up being the story Intrigue, but I never felt like I got the kind of bonding I was looking for in that tale.  So, I decided to try again, this time with something a little more civilian.  I began wondering what character traits I could develop in these two characters, and a love of speed sprang to mind.  As I happen to be a lifelong NASCAR fan myself, it just seemed to fit.  I can definitely see it being in Jason’s character, and Damian would obviously like anything that goes fast.**

**I realize the beginning is a bit sappy, but I think we can all remember losing our first love, and feeling like the world was crashing down around us.  Even though you and I know we will see Robin again, Damian doesn’t know that yet.  For a child with undiagnosed attachment disorders, a hint of several personality disorders, and a heaping helping of PTSD, I think the reaction I wrote to Robin moving across the country is fairly accurate.**

**Next posting might be a while.  I have several new stories in the works, but I don’t know which one I want to focus on next.  I believe I might leave this storyline here for right now and go back in time to do a piece focusing on Batman and young Dick as Robin that I’ve been keeping on a back burner for a while.  I’m planning that one to be around 25-30 thousand words, which means that, when it’s done, it will probably be closer to 40-45 thousand words.  We’ll see how the muse strikes me.**

**I have recently had a couple readers wondering about where to post requests and story ideas.  Since AO3 doesn’t currently have a PM feature, any requests or ideas can be posted in the comments of Timeline.  That should keep things a little neater.  I will also post that note on my Profile page…eventually.**

**Thanks for playing along.**


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